A Glass
by Cr8zeCorbinFangirl
Summary: Gold and Hook bond over the mourning of Baelfire Post "And Straight on till Morning."


A/N: I just want to say, this was something that kept rumbling in my head after i watched the Season 2 Finale. Rumple and Hook both had a fatherly connection by Bae and in hearing about his 'death' - because we all saw that ending and jumped up and down and started being happy again - they are completely floored and don't really know what to do. So I thought about all these lines for Hook's speech. And then, when I tried to write them...yeah that didn't really work out like I thought it would.

So, can you please be nice about this? I think it actually is quite touching. And it is true that their love for Bae and Milah are what bind them together. So be nice, yes?

I own nothing. If I did...oh, the slashing :D Oh! And Belle would've never been Lacey. I really didn't like Lacey ^_-

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The salt air was a sensation that Gold could honestly say he hadn't missed terribly. He always dislike dealing off land. The sea reminded him of Milah. And Milah reminded him of Baelfire. And – now more than ever – the thought of Baelfire was pure pain. The only thing that kept him from collapsing to his feet into a sobbing wretch was a white-knuckle grip on his cane.

Perhaps it was the remnants of his hatred for Hook that also kept him upright. He was on the ingrate's ship – like hell he would show that kind of weakness there.

He could hear the Charmings and Regina plotting away on how they would search for Henry once the Jolly Roger made port at Neverland. He paid them little mind: He just stood tall at the stern, losing his thoughts in the waters below. Up the stairs behind him, he heard worn out boots approaching. He turned and, whether it was conscious or not, his grip on his cane tightened.

Hook saw it and gave a sigh. "Calm yourself, Crocodile." In his hook, he carried a basket that he placed behind the helm. Inside Gold saw a bottle of rum, unopened, and two small glasses. "I come bearing a peace offering."

Gold put on his usual mocking smile and pointed to the so-called 'gift' with one bony finger. "Well, if this is your idea of a peace offering, you might want to try a little harder, _dearie._" As he joined his hands atop his cane, he leaned forward with a sneer. "Because of you, I've had quite my share of liquor for this lifetime." Gold let the remark sink in for a moment before he turned back around to the sea.

Hook rolled his eyes. "Then don't drink it. Raise your glass then." He joined Gold at his side.

"Oh yeah, and just what are we 'raising a glass' to? To your impudence? Stupidity? Vanity? Because while I would toast to that on any special day, I hold doubt your pride will allow such a thing."

Hook didn't respond to the comment. He just let it gloss over his coat and after a moment, he swallowed and spoke. "To Baelfire."

Gold's cane couldn't have come up any faster even if it was aided by magic than it did as Gold's temper flared. Gold pushed Hook into the railing, the stick pushing threateningly into his throat. Gold leaned closer and closer with murder in his eyes. "Do not speak of my son. Do not speak as if you know my pain."

"It may surprise you, Crocodile, but I do." Hook tried to maneuver his arms to put some space between the cane and his wind-pipe. "You gave up hope of ever seeing him and then he's right there in front of you and you can feel it - your heart and you think you can die happy. And before you can tell him, he's gone and it's like the whole world has fallen off its edge." He tried to meet Gold in the middle. "I know your pain better than anyone on this ship."

Gold blinked in shock and surprise. Silence hung in the air, neither man making a move. Gold wondered just how he was supposed to feel about it all.

Slowly, he pulled away. Hook rubbed at his throat and Gold let him take his time. But one look at his posture, he was expecting further explanation on just_ how_ Hook knew his enemy so well.

"The creature on Neverland – the one who wants the boy – took Baelfire once. He dropped into the water. I...I pulled him out and made him crew of my ship." Hook, in a trance, walked across the stern. Beside the rum, he let his hook trace over something he carved into the wood. "He took to it like a cow to cud. And I took to him as a my own child." At this he saw Gold's jaw tighten. So he jumped quickly to the next part of the story – the part he knew Gold would care about. "He spoke of you often – about the father that left him behind." That clenched jaw loosened and he saw sadness in his eyes.

"I thought we could be a family, just like Milah had talked about. But...the kid found the drawing I kept of her and he insisted on leaving. And when those boys...the ones that work for Him, those...Lost Boys, when they took him, I realized something." Here Hook turned and faced Gold head on. "Your father abandoned you as a babe, yes?" There was a beat where Gold's eyes widened and Hook took that as a yes. "Mine left me on a ship in the middle of the night as a child. And we all know what you did to Baelfire. He was no better than me when he talked about you – angry, ashamed, bitter. But when they took him, I realized that beneath all that anger, Baelfire was nothing like us." Hook ventured a step closer, trying to drive home his point. "Underneath it all, he was just a boy. A boy who wanted his family back together again."

Gold let out a long breath – he hadn't even realized how long he had been holding it. He forced himself to laugh, even a small chuckle. "Milah certainly had her taste in men." He walked to the railing, leaning on it as he recovered.

Hook turned back to the carvings, tracing them idly. "That's what made him so important, wasn't it?" He remarked. "Sure to you, he was your own flesh and blood, but after...he became so much darling, didn't he? Because he was the last piece of Milah you had to hold on to." As the sentence clicked together in his own head, Gold lifted his head to look at the pirate. Hook seemed lost in the scratching and for once, Gold sincerely wondered what was going on inside his head.

"He said that he sacrificed himself so that a family could stay happy. Sometimes, I would look at him and wonder just how a boy that selfless and brave could grow when his mother left him at such a young age. And then I understood." Hook once more raised his head. He met Gold's gaze. "As much as it stings to say it, you raised your boy right...Crocodile."

Gold could only stare for the longest moment.

He picked his jaw off the floor and crossed the wood in a few steps. He grabbed the rum and pulled out the cork. With a quick hand, he poured it across the glasses. He took one and raised it. "To Baelfire."

Hook stared at him for a moment as well before picking up his own glass and forcing a smile. "Henry couldn't have asked for a better father."

They cheered and while Hook downed himself, Gold just stared into the amber liquor. His gaze slowly turned to the rag-tag crew down on deck.

Sure, Emma was strong in her own sense and she held justice in her own sense. But Henry's outlook on life, the unmitigated belief of good triumphing over evil, and yet never truly believing anyone was completely evil...

Well, he could finally see where his grandson got it from.

It was just a shame that Baelfire could never see how wonderful of a father he had become.

And then, did he drink.


End file.
